Hello, and welcome to your Beginners’ Guide to MOBA Roles in Gameplay. I’ll be here to show you around the basics, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.



What is a MOBA? MOBA stands for Multiplayer Online Battle Arena. Perhaps, one of the most famous MOBAs are, League of Legends and DOTA (Defence of the Agents). It’s a 5 v 5, real-time battle against the other team, in a race to destroy the Nexus (a giant crystal in the middle of the enemies’ base). You, yes you, have the ability to transform into a legendary hero and fight alongside your teammates (hopefully) to victory.



‘What types of heroes are there?’, I hear you ask. Well, there are many variations in the names, however, I’m mostly going to use League (League of Legends) terms, as these are what I am more familiar with. They are the following: Marksman/ADC, Tank, Support, APC and Jungler. 



The Marksman/ADC – Attack Damage Carry

Deals out the most damage

Kills the enemy teammates

Vulnerable to Tanks and Junglers

Squishy – low HP (health)

Tends to have support – as they are squishy



The Tank/Bruiser

High HP – literally a ‘tank’

Soaks up damage

Crowd control – temporarily takes away certain enemies’ abilities

Targets ADC



Support

Primarily supports ADC by healing/defending

Uses Crowd Control and Stuns

All to help ADC secure kills



APC/Mid-laner – Ability Power Carry

Deals a lot of damage

Doesn’t require support

Auto-Attacks

Deals Burst Damage – lots of damage in short time



Jungler

Goes into Jungle – to battle monsters, XP farm

Assists in lanes – huge roam ability

Can deal large amounts of Damage

Very Mobile



You may now have a certain level of understanding about the different roles. Allow me to clear up some of the terminology used…



What is a Lane? - A lane is a direct path to the other enemies’ territory and base. There are three lanes: Top, Middle and Bottom. The middle lane is the shortest path as the other two are along the edge of the map. As you move through the lanes, allied ‘minions’ (your bots) will also go through the lanes, and attack the enemy ‘towers’ (towers that shoot you). You should also attack the towers to make sure that the path to the enemy base is clear.



What are Auto-attacks? - They are pretty much what they say on the tin. These are attacks that are automated, and you do not need to aim or press a button for the attack to happen. However, it can be interrupted by the player’s actions or certain events happening.



What is the Jungle? - The Jungle is the part where monsters lurk, and an XP (experience) farm. Junglers don’t share their XP with the team, causing them to level up more quickly. The Jungle is in between the lanes.



Ideally, you should have all five roles in your team, however, it’s not necessary in a casual game.